Saturday, May 23, 2009

Indigo Dyeing Day

Today was Indigo Dyeing Day. Jennifer Gould hosted an indigo dyeing workshop at her home for our Fiber Arts Guild and some friends. Jennifer provided the dye and the instruction, a variety of goodies, and perfect weather.

While the dye was being prepared, we soaked our fabric and yarn. Then it was time for the dye pot. Here is Jennifer pulling the first product, her yarn, out of the dye pot. We left each piece in the dye for only a minute. When we pulled the fiber out, it was green. Once in the air, it quickly oxidized and turned a dark blue.

Here are two pictures of our fabrics and yarn drying. Notice the amazing pseudo-clothespole holding up the rope. It was created from two ladders and some concrete blocks by Jennifer's friendly neighbor. Many of us tried some shibori. We stitched and tied the fabric and the thread or string acted as a resist to keep the dye from that part of the fabric. You can see some of the fabric tied together in the first picture.

In this picture, you can see some of the fabric after the stitching or tying has been released.

And these are the fabrics I dyed. I hope to use them together to make a vest. For the piece on the far left, I pulled up little bunches of fabric and tied them off. For the second piece, I gathered the fabric in wavy lines. For the third piece, I gathered parallel lines. This was the first piece I did. I realized quickly that I would have to use a different method if I wanted to get all my fabric done. For the fourth piece, I tied little stones into the fabric. For the fifth piece, I pleated the fabric diagonally and tied it every couple of inches. For the sixth piece, I scrunched the fabric diagonally and tied it.

And here is a little something extra that I found after I got home. The dye went right through my shoe.